While growing up, White spent time sleeping in cars, homeless shelters and in other less-than-ideal environments across the Los Angeles and Las Vegas area, as his father worked a number of different jobs to support White and his eight brothers and sisters. White and his siblings would make a 16-mile round-trip walk to school each day, collecting aluminum cans along the way to earn additional income. After enduring these obstacles, White suffered a devastating loss when his only brother, Elwood, was killed by a deputy in 2012.

On the field, White is fifth in the Pac-12 in receptions (47), tied for eighth in receiving yards (573) and third in all-purpose yards (148.3 yards per game). The redshirt senior also has a three-year-old daughter named Brooklyn.

"It's really about accepting who I am," White told Bleacher Report this season about his upbringing. "I know that it can help a lot of people, because a lot of people have lived parts of my story. The hope is that if anything, it can help somebody else."

The 5-foot-11, 185-pound White is a member of the Sun Devils’ track and field program, too. Before becoming a student-athlete at Arizona State, White won the U.S. Junior Outdoor Track and Field Championship with a leap of 54 feet, 1 inch in the triple jump. He also won the silver medal in the Pan American Junior Athletics Championships in Medellin, Colombia, with a 16.49 meter jump (would have placed him 12th in the 2012 London Olympics).

The Courage Award was first presented by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) in 2002. A select group of writers from the FWAA vote on the winner each year. The requirements for nomination include displaying courage on or off the field, including overcoming an injury or physical handicap, preventing a disaster or living through hardship. The winner of the award will be included in festivities during Capital One Orange Bowl week and receive his trophy at an on-field presentation.